Dawn of a New Era
by KingJericho
Summary: The galaxy has triumphed over the Reapers, the dawn of a new era shines over the galaxy. The races of the galaxy rebuilds from the ashes of war, yet old and new conflicts awaken, and the fires of revolution and change burn. But for John Shepard, a new life begins for him with his bondmate Liara T'Soni and their friends aboard the Normandy.
1. The Aftermath

_**The Crucible, Citadel  
**_ _ **Battle for Earth, 2186**_

 _After arguing with the Catalyst that extinction was not the solution, and that Synthesis couldn't be forced upon organic life across the galaxy, Shepard himself was faced with two logical choices, destruction of the Reapers, or control of the reapers._

 _As he thought about taking control of it, hoping that he would never become power-hungry as the Illusive Man, he then realized that the option to control left too much uncertainty in the future._

 _While he thought about destroy, the pain and desperation to end the war quickly made him think that the damage could be repaired with ease and he hoped that the galaxy could follow the lessons learned about the Reapers and possibly the Geth peace with the Quarians, that the Catalyst's words of a new conflict between organics and synthetics would never repeat. He gripped his pistol and began walking towards his right._

 _"Your time is at end, you must decide" the Catalyst told Shepard as he walked towards the power conduit with his Carnifex pistol pointed at it. The moment he walked closer and closer to it, he fired his pistol and after a few shots, the conduit exploded._

 _He knew his choice, destroy the Reapers, undo the Leviathan's greatest mistake and allow the Galaxy to choose its own path._

 _As he witnesses his final moments, he thought of the people who was with him until the very end, Garrus, Joker, EDI, Ashley, Engineers Donnelly, and Daniels, Dr. Chakwas, Engineer Adams, Miranda, those who sacrificed themselves for the sake of others, Legion, Thane, and Kaidan, and finally the Asari he loved dearly, Liara. As he thought of her, he experienced a bright blinding light._

 _"And so.. our solution ends" the final words of the Catalyst before it faded into the oblivion._

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Unknown Planet  
** **A week after the Battle for Earth**

While most of the Normandy's crew were thankful that they were still alive, some were not, especially Joker when EDI suddenly went offline after the frigate was caught in the Crucible blast, and Liara when she realized that they could be stuck on the planet for months and that she would face the possibility of losing Shepard yet again. The crew, so eager to get home, worked around the clock in order to get the frigate up and running.

"Dr. T'Soni, we just got the QEC back online and Admiral Hackett is trying to contact you", Specialist Traynor said while knocking on the door of the XO's office. As the door opened Traynor could see that Liara is still depressed about leaving Shepard, while most of the crew comforted the asari about the possibility of Shepard's death, Liara couldn't accept the possibility of losing Shepard for a second time and hoped that Hackett would tell her some good news about the man she loved dearly.

As Liara entered the QEC room she saw the Admiral's holographic projection, along with the Normandy's crew, awaiting her, "Dr. T'Soni, glad to see you and the Normandy still in one piece" Hackett said while looking at the asari, he noticed that she was distraught, "Doctor, are you alright?"

"Yes Admiral, I'm alright" the asari lied with a weak voice, "Doctor T'Soni, I know you're expecting news about Commander Shepard but when we reached the rendezvous point we discovered that the Charon Relay was severely damaged and guessing from communications from other fleets nearly every Mass Relay suffers the same problem. While the only good news I can give you is that, according to communications from Earth, the Citadel is still standing yet damaged and that I have a few ships that remained in the Sol System, I'll try to contact them and tell them to form search and rescue mission." Hackett assured the distraught asari.

"Anyways, I have ordered most Alliance Fleets, and some of the Asari, and Turian fleets to rendezvous at Earth if possible, that order goes the same for you, the sooner you could get the Normandy running, the better and hopefully by that time, we should have some news for you. Hackett out" the Admiral said as his holographic projection powered down.

As she stood there thinking, Liara immediately felt the urge to vomit as she couldn't hold it much longer the asari put her hand over her mouth and began rushing out of the room.

While the crew discussed among themselves on their plan to return to the Sol System, Liara immediately rushed out of the room, when the crew noticed this Garrus and Tali immediately went after her. After moments of searching, they eventually found her inside the bathroom of Shepard's cabin.

The duo could hear the distinct sounds of someone vomiting, concerned the quarian knocked on the door, "Liara, are you okay?" Tali asked as they both waited for an answer.

The answer they hoped for only came in the form of the sounds of the asari vomiting once more, the turian and quarian looked at each other, "I hope she's okay" Garrus said.

After moments of anxious waiting, the doors opened as the tired asari walked to the bed, embracing the comfort the somewhat soft yet still hard matress provided, though the asari couldn't sleep because she knew her friends would still be waiting for answers.

The asari sat back up as she looked at the two, "Liara, are you alright? What happened back there?" Tali asked, Liara looked around her surroundings for a while before turning back to the quarian and the turian.

"I don't know but the only time an asari vomits is when we fall victim to certain types of illnesses, ingest food that are posionous to us, or if we're.." the asari paused for a while as she realized it.

 _'I do have one thing for you Shepard, a gift it would only take a moment'_

"Liara, was there something you were gonna say?" Garrus asked as the asari placed a hand over her stomach, "I think.. I'm pregnant" the asari realized.

The three of them sat in silence for a while, taking in the news they just heard, finally the quarian spoke in delight, "I'm so happy for you Liara!"

"But I think you should inform Doctor Chakwas" Garrus suggested, "I'll inform her myself, for now I think I'll need some rest" Liara told them as she laid her head back on the bed.

"Of course, you deserve it since you just received some great news." Tali said as they walked up to the cabin doors, "And Liara, don't worry about Shepard. He'll come back, he always does." the quarian assured her.

"Besides, the man has a new reason to come back to." Garrus joked referring to Liara's pregnancy, the asari simply smiled at the turian, "I guess he does.." she said as her two friends left the cabin.

Liara looked up at the window, looking at the vast expanse of stars and planets that the universe contained, thinking about a place that they could find where they could all live in peace and happiness, where they could pay no heed to the galaxy's never-ending issues.

The asari held her stomach as she thought of the life she had experienced, from the time she was saved on Therum, how she fell in love with John Shepard while they were on an adventure to stop Saren, and how she lost him once afterwards.

 _'Goddess, please let him come back to me'_ she prayed before letting the sweet comfort of sleep embrace her.

* * *

 **C-Sec Offices, Zakera Ward, Citadel**

The Citadel, the once-great space station, the symbol of galactic democracy and unity, now a grim reminder of the cost that it took to win the war. While most of the wards were spared despite having a few gigantic holes in its superstructures, the Presidium Ring and Tayseri Ward stand in partial ruins, however by some miracle most of it's residents were spared and the mass effect fields that helped hold the atmosphere along with the station's function to rotate remained intact.

Commander Bailey, one of the commanding officers of C-Sec, from glorified doorman, as he liked to call himself, to resistance leader during the Reaper occupation, to temporarily holding command along, with his fellow commanders, of the Citadel after the Council was evacuated, was surprised to see Alliance soldiers boarding the station so quickly after the final battle.

He was approached by a young Lieutenant, "Commander Bailey, I'm Lieutenant Henry, Alliance Marines, our squad has been dispatched to search any survivors on the areas near the Crucible, or what was supposed to be the Crucible." Lieutenant Henry explained their mission, "We were hoping that you or your men could lend a hand, since you have a better understanding of this station than we do."

"Of course, I suppose we all owe the people that saved our asses that much.. The remains of the Crucible are near the Citadel tower, if I were you I'd wear your helmets and have them pressurized since there's no telling if that area is still pressurized." Bailey told the Lieutenant, "You could take your shuttles there, and try to enter it from the outside. And I'm sorry that I couldn't come, I need to keep check on my men"

"No problem, Commander, we'll be on our way" Henry told as he and his squad walked back to their shuttles.

As they arrived to the Citadel Tower which was surprisingly still pressurized, they looked far and wide in search for any survivors or bodies, until they found a place that none of them ever thought existed in the tower, they found two bodies.

The body of the Admiral that led the Earth Resistance, and the man who once believed in pro-human views, who in the end betrayed the very race he was supposed to uplift.

"We found Admiral Anderson, and the 'Illusive Man'.. No signs of Commander Shepard" Lieutenant Henry told his superiors through their comms.

While they searched the area, one of the men scanned a pile of rubble, as his Omni-tool beeped positively he immediately called for help in digging up the rubble, as they removed most of the upper layer of debris, they were surprised at what they found.

A man wearing N7 dogtags, and his heavily damaged N7 armor, the man that saved the galaxy. Shepard.

The medic immediately came over and was shocked when the Commander gasped for air, "Alright, let's get him out of here!" the medic shouted as they began removing rubble after rubble until they could pull Shepard out without any additional harm.

"This is Citadel Team Zeta, we found Shepard!" the Lieutenant spoke into his comms, "I repeat, Shepard is alive but condition critical!" he repeated as the team moved as fast as they could to the shuttle.

* * *

 **SSV Orizaba, Sol System**

The remains of the Fifth Fleet flew gracefully across the vast space, with other fleets following behind. They passed by the Charon Relay, the gateway of Humanity to the stars, which stands severely damaged, its gyroscopic rings displaced and floating in space. While the fleets moved forward, some ships remained to start the attempt to repair and reactivate the Mass Relay.

Inside the SSV Orizaba, the flagship of the Fifth Fleet, Admiral Hackett stands looking at the damaged relay. As Head of the Alliance Military, he became the emergency head of the Systems Alliance after Udina's death, while he looked forward to the rebuilding efforts, he was also concerned about the political and social aftermath of the war.

With the Systems Alliance Government currently in shambles, most of the Fleets depleted, and some colonies still in the dark, it seemed that thr future of humanity seems bleak

"Admiral, we're now receiving status reports from Bekenstein, Terra Nova, Eden Prime, and Noveria. We're also receiving status reports from the European Union, UNAS, and other nations on Earth" an alliance communications officer told Hackett, "It seems their messages are all the same, all Reaper forces have dropped dead or disintegrated. It seems the Crucible actually did more than we expected sir"

Hackett smiled for the first time in a few years, however he returned to his stoic look as he thought about those who had to sacrifice themselves to give them a chance at seeing tomorow. He was also concerned for Admiral Anderson, Commander Shepard and his crew.

"Sir, we just got word from one of our teams in the Citadel.." as Hackett heard this, he braced for the possibility of both good news and bad news, "they found Commander Shepard.."

"How about Anderson?" Hackett asked the officer, "Unfortunately, he didn't make it.. however the Commander is in critical condition.." the young officer replied, "Then tell them to get him up here on the double!" Hackett ordered, "And contact Rear Admiral Shepard, she needs to know this."

On one of the Dreadnought's shuttle bays, the ship's medical crew were preparing to escort the Commander and try to keep his condition stable, as Hackett personally waited for the arrival. The Admiral knew that the Commander was a fighter, but barely surviving beneath a pile of rubble for a week is most likely a miracle.

"Attention all medical personnel, Shuttle SAR-03 is arriving, I repeat, Shuttle SAR-03 is arriving" the intercom said as the shuttle that carried the rescue team arrived, once the doors opened the squad immediately brought out a stretcher carrying the Commander, and two bodybags. Once the Medical team took responsibility over Shepard, the Admiral walked up to the two bodybags and began partially unzipping the first one.

There he saw Admiral Anderson's face, for him it looked like he was finally at peace, then he moved to the other bodybag where upon opening it, he saw the corrupted face of the Illusive Man, the sight has shocked the Admiral, after a few seconds he closed the two bodybags, and went on to the Medical Bay.

Once he arrived, he saw the badly-injured Commander, his face filled with scars that glow due to his cybernetics, some parts of his body badly burned, and his armor nearly vaporized. "How bad is it, doctor?" the admiral asked.

"Fortunately, most of his cybernetics seem to be keeping him stable, though we can't tell right now the state of his internal organs or if there's an infection from his untreated wounds. I'd say, it was a miracle that he survived this long." the doctor said.

Hackett looked at Shepard's body before glancing at the doctor, "Continue your work doctor, inform me of any developments" the admiral said as he walked out of the med-bay.

As he left the med-bay he was stopped by a Rear Admiral, the captain of the ship, whose face somewhat resembles the Lion of Elysium.

"Hackett, I heard my son just arrived, how is he?" Rear Admiral Hannah Shepard asked him, "He's still fighting but doing fine." Hackett assured her.

"If you wish to see him, go ahead." the Admiral said as he walked past Hannah, "I need to inform his crew." he said as the woman entered the med-bay

"Contact the Normandy, they need to hear the news." Hackett said to his communications officer as he entered the comm-room.

"Yes sir, contacting SSV Normandy through QEC." the comm-officer told him

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Unknown Planet  
** **2 hours (Galactic Standard) later**

The crew of the Normandy SR-2 were working day and night in order to get the frigate up and running, with Joker, and the Engineering crew working around the clock to ensure that the drive core is stable and functional, Specialist Traynor keeping check for any updates from Alliance Command, Javik, Vega, and Ashley taking turns between repairing the exterior hull and the interior, Garrus doing calibrations with the main gun, while Liara busies herself with the Shadow Broker network.

"Liara, Admiral Hackett wants to speak with you." Traynor said over the intercom, Liara began walking to the comm-room as she heard this, hoping that she would receive some good news about Shepard, if not, at least they will get some closure. As entered the comm-room she saw the hologram of Admiral Hackett.

"Doctor T'Soni, we have some good news for you" Hackett said, "We found Shepard, our team discovered him buried under a pile of rubble in the Citadel, and by some miracle, he managed to survive. Right now, the whole thing is kept from the public for a while until his condition stabilizes."

"Any ideas on how long he will recover?" Liara asked, "No idea, the doctors say he's in a coma right now, we'll pour whatever available resource we have to keep him alive, and I'm having my team contact Miss Lawson, since we both know she played an important part in Project Lazarus, maybe she could help in Shepard's recovery." Hackett answered.

"Here's hoping" Liara said, "Thank you, Admiral" she added. "You're welcome, doctor, but please try not to worry about him too much. Hackett out." Hackett said before closing the channel.

Liara stood there, thinking about how she lost Shepard before, and what she went through just to see him alive and that her prayers were finally answered once again.

The asari placed a hand on her stomach, thinking about the gift she gave Shepard and herself, the growing consciousness inside her womb, their daughter...

* * *

 _As Shepard walked through the dark forest, he could see the once-haunting shadows disappear one-by-one, with each whisper that carries his name disappear, as he wandered, he saw a bright light from afar, as he began walking towards the light he could hear a whisper, the conversation he had before Anderson died._

 _"I think you'd make a great dad"... "Think how proud your kids will be, telling everyone that their dad is Commander Shepard.."_

* * *

 **Commonwealth of Australia, Earth**

Miranda Lawson, a woman that was received into the Alliance with hesitant arms, has proven herself to be one of the most valuable intelligence officers of the Alliance Intelligence Group. After the war, the operative took it upon herself to assist in reconstruction efforts, after volunteering she was assigned to the beautiful yet scarred coastal city of Sydney.

"Miss Lawson, Admiral Hackett has requested that your presence aboard the SSV Orizaba." a female Alliance Intelligence officer said, looking away from her work, Miranda turned to face the intel officer.

"Mind if I ask, what is this all about?" Miranda asked, "Your dossier says that you worked with Project Lazarus, and well.. let's just say your expertise is needed again." the intel officer replied, Miranda's eyes widened when she heard 'Project Lazarus'.

"Wait, you mean to say that-" Miranda said before she was cut off, "Yes, Commander Shepard was found critically injured." the young officer told. Miranda nodded at the intel officer as they boarded the shuttle that will take them to the SSV Orizaba.

As they arrived on the dreadnought, Miranda was greeted by Admiral Hackett, "Miss Lawson, we've just recovered Shepard from the Citadel a few hours ago, while his condition is stable, the Commander is still in a coma, and the docs are not optimistic about his condition." the admiral said as they walked in the Medical Bay, from there Miranda saw the Commander's battle-weary body.

"And since you were part of Project Lazarus, which brought Shepard from a near-death state, we're here to ask if you could do the same thing again. It's the least we can all do for him." Hackett finished while Miranda moved to have a closer inspection of Shepard's injuries.

"It seems you're right Admiral, it's the least we can do.." Miranda said as she inspected his scars that were glowing orange due to his cybernetics, "Most of his injuries can be and should be treated normally, with possibly some frequent medi-gel use. However our greatest concern is to ensure that his cybernetics work normally and that they don't get rejected. But there is little risk of infection since we.. did some genetic tampering.." she added, with the last part said with anxiety, "What kind of tampering are talking about?" Hackett said.

Miranda brought up a datapad and showed the data about the Lazarus Project's actions, "We did some small prototypical modifications to his cellular regeneration system and immune system."

"The improved cell regeneration helps in healing his wounds, both minor and major, and while it isn't robust as the asari's are, it did inadvertently increase his lifespan to about 300 more years..." she said.

"I can't tell if that last part is good or bad.." Hackett said, "Well, since Shepard is bonded with an asari, you could say it's a good thing for both of them, and for us since we'll still have a living hero decades from now.." Miranda said, grinning a bit when she said the first part.

"Well, Miss Lawson, just tell us what you need and we'll let you do your job. And again, thank you for taking the opportunity to join the Alliance" Hackett said as he left the room.

As Miranda was left alone with Shepard, she whispered, "Aren't you a tough bastard to kill?" as she began monitoring his condition while waiting for the medical staff.

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Unknown Planet**

Back on the Normandy, while most of the crew were working, Liara, decided to go to the med-bay and speak with Doctor Chakwas about her pregnancy. "Ah, Liara, what brings you here?", the good doctor asked, "Well.. Doctor, do you know anything about asari pregnancies?" the asari nervously asked, as the doctor raised her brows.

"Why do you ask? Oh wait, don't answer that, I think I saw you with a reduced appetite for the past few days, and I can distinctly remember hearing someone vomit in the captain's quarter's toilets." the doctor said as she walked up to Liara and scanned the asari with her omni-tool, "I believe congratulations are in order."

"Well, it's a good thing that asari pregnancies are nearly similar to human pregnancies. Let me guess Shepard is the father?" Chakwas asked, while Liara nodded her head, "Yes, we melded before the final attack on the Conduit" Liara confessed, "And I suspect that Shepard doesn't know yet?" the doctor asked once more as the asari looked down.

"I planned on telling him once the battle was over.." the asari said, as she sat down on a medical bed, Chakwas noticed that the asari stayed silent, so she decided to move the conversation back to the asari's pregnancy.

"Standard human procedures for asari pregnancy. Since our two species both have a nearly similar gestation period, and experience the same hormonal changes, even our anatomy are extremely similar so I believe human guides should suit your needs for now" Chakwas added as she transferred various educational resoures to Liara's omni-tool

The asari read the materials she was given in her omni-tool as she cross-referenced it with the lessons about asari reproduction from her school days, she could see the similarities between their two species.

"I never knew that our species had so much in common" the asari said with her eyes widened from surprise, "I can see that the Liara I first met is still in there" the doctor said as they both laughed at the joke.

While it was true that Liara came a long way from being a naive, and innocent researcher to a cold and sometimes ruthless information broker, the asari believed that she could return to that old personality of hers once the war is over, especially once she and Shepard begin raising a family together.

* * *

 _Author's Notes:_ Thanks for reading this little fan-fiction of mine, while I may have some slight experience in writing stories before, I never thought of writing one for Mass Effect. However after playing the trilogy for.. many times.. I felt that the (High EMS) destroy ending leaves me wanting more, and since we may never see an actual epilogue to the trilogy (which is a good thing since it allows us to be creative with our own personal endings), I decided to share my interpretation of a post-ME3 galaxy.

As you may have noticed, some of my interpretations (or headcanons, as you will) may have been inspired from the headcanons of others. As the story progresses, you may see some headcanons that may seem similar to one's made by others. And while I'll try to make this story focus on the aftermath of the war, there will be chapters where it will shift focus to the crew's antics and Liara & Shepard's new life.

Anyways, once again, thank you for reading, and please leave a review and don't hesitate to post constructive criticisms about my story and/or writing.

Note that John Shepard in this story is a Spacer, War Hero, Paragade (mostly Paragon), and a Sentinel class.

 _2/10/2017 - Chapter 1 and the other chapters have been updated, chapter one had a lot of changes, especially at the beginning, the changes were done to fix the problems with the plot here._


	2. Hero's Return

**Earth, Sol System  
December 25, 2186, 3 Months after the Reaper War**

For most of their history, Humanity have experienced its fair share of destructive conflicts, during the 20th Century, the Second World War brought near-total destruction to most of mainland Europe, the Japanese cities of Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Tokyo, along with the Philippines' Manila, despite the seemingly hopeless aftermath the world was able to rebuild and enter a long-era of uneasy peace between superpower states.

While the destruction caused by the Reapers gave the same impression that Earth would never be the same again, many believed that they would be able to rise from the ruins of the most devastating conflict, not only in Human history, but of galactic history, stronger than ever.

Most of Earth's nations were able to reestablish their power over their territories after a brief period of anarchy, and most of the wealthiest nations on Earth were able to rebuild major cities within a short period of time. While some of the lesser developed nations, especially in Africa and Latin America, have descended into partial anarchy with separatist factions fighting to establish new governments according to their ideologies.

The Systems Alliance while it lost nearly half of its fleet, remained a formidable force to be reckoned with alongside the Turian Hierarchy and the Asari Republics. While public approval of the organization skyrocketed after the war, there was still resentment by some against the Alliance for supposedly abandoning Earth during the initial invasion however this did not hinder the Alliance Military's massive influx of recruits and financial support.

While the Citadel remained in Earth orbit, there were some concerns from both Earth and the Citadel about the possible political and social issues that would erupt from having the symbol of galactic unity in human space, and the possible massive influx of Human residents in the space station.

Meanwhile, the Citadel's repair was progressing smoothly thanks to the combined efforts of the Council races, the Rachni, and surprisingly the Keepers, while the small yet effective creatures were reverted to Reaper control once they took over the Citadel, the mysterious species returned to their normal duties after the destruction of the Reapers, though the fact that the Keeper tunnels are currently mass graves for human bodies did spark some concern about their 'loyalty'.

* * *

 _Christmas celebrations are still on going, with the majority of Earth's populace taking a brief respite from all the rebuilding to spend some quality time with their friends and families. Meanwhile, religious leaders have taken the opportunity to declare a moment of silence and prayer for the brave souls that perished during the Reaper invasion._

 _Martial law in the Chinese People's Federation, and the Malayan Confederation was lifted today, with the Systems Alliance continuing their relief efforts in heavily war-torn countries. The Populi Exercitum, a communist human-survivalist group, remains in control of the southern regions in the Latin American Union._

 _This has been the Alliance News Network._

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Unknown System**

The frigate's mess hall became a complete mess, with beer bottles scattered around, food stains all over the floor and tables, along with the wasted bodies of drunk crew members, especially Joker, Ashley, and surprisingly Vega. Those who remained sober busied themselves with cleaning up the mess their fellow crewmen left behind, as they knew that tomorrow is another day of repairs.

Liara, whose belly began showing a bulge due to her pregnancy, decided to sit in the Medical Bay and have a conversation with Doctor Chakwas, one of the original members who made her feel welcome in the SR-1. "So since we're talking about our past, why don't I ask the question that most of the crew, especially Garrus, Vega, Adams and Cortez, always wanted to ask: when did you start having feelings for Shepard?" Chakwas asked with a grin.

"A few days after Therum, I started to develop a 'crush' on him. Then after a few missions, I looked into his personal and service history, found a few things that made him seem more... interesting.." Liara confessed, "And really, most of them were that curious about my relationship with him?"

"Well, you should know that Garrus made a bet with Joker and Kaidan back in the day, I think I remember Joker saying something like 'the shy and bookish asari is falling in love with her knight in shining armor', then came the whole Shadow Broker business, Garrus joked about 'you becoming a reclusive stalker who watches Shepard's every move', you two made for a good conversation topic for the crew back then." the doctor chuckled before motioning the asari to continue.

"Then I felt brave enough to ask him if there was something between us, I was extremely happy when he said there was, before Ilos, well we, as you humans say, made love, he even took me to a few dates after that. And I'm pretty sure you know what happened when.. we lost the SR-1." the asari continued as she looked down.

"Of course, I visited you a few times, you were always depressed, you held on to one of his spare N7 chestplates, and I'm pretty sure I saw you one time with a gun and a few beer bottles on the table, thank God you didn't do what most of us feared." Chakwas said, "Well, I think we should continue this conversation tomorrow, you should get some rest, I'll take over the cleaning you were supposed to do, Liara."

Before leaving the Med-bay, Liara turned to the Doctor, "Thank you, Karin" she said as she left the room.

* * *

 _"I never had a family, never had children..", "Ever think about settling down?" the tired admiral asked, "Yeah, I like the sound of that... I'm not sure if I'd be good at it, though" Shepard answered._

 _"Sure you would.. I think you'd make a great dad.." Anderson told him, "Think how proud your kids would be... Telling everyone that their dad is.. Commander Shepard"_

 _As Shepard experienced a vision of that moment, he then remembered the conversation with Liara after they defeated the Shadow Broker. "Marriage, old age, and a lot of little blue children?" as he heard his own words, he then sees a vision of him cradling a baby, an asari, their daughter..._

* * *

 **Geneva, European Union**

The city of Geneva, along with the nation of Switzerland, was fortunately spared from most of the destruction brought forth by the Reapers, who focused on starving the city into submission by blocking major routes along the Swiss Alps. It was here where the Alliance began setting up their temporary base of operations on Earth, and the location of the hospital where Shepard was relocated.

Two nurses were administering to Shepard as they heard groaning, they immediately looked at Shepard and were surprised when they saw his eyes slowly open, "Inform Miss Lawson, and the Admiral, hurry!" one of the nurses said as his colleague left the room in a rush. The Commander immediately lost consciousness once again.

When Shepard once again woke up, he was greeted by two familiar faces, the faces of Admiral Hackett and Miranda Lawson, "Welcome back to the land of the living, Commander" Hackett greeted him, as he looked around his surroundings, he noticed that one of the clocks displayed the month of December, "How long was I out?" Shepard asked.

"About 3 months, the Admiral here sent a search team to the Citadel after they got communications reestablished, it's a miracle that you survived a week under a pile of rubble." Miranda answered, "How about the Normandy and her crew? Where are they right now?" he asked, showing concern for the crew that followed him into hell and back.

"Right now, they're in an unknown planet in the Exodus Cluster, I've been able to keep in touch with them, and informed them about you.. Anyways, I'm supposed to debrief you once you're up, but I can always do it later if you'd like.." Hackett told him.

"Now is fine, Admiral.." Shepard answered as he began retelling his story, from their run to the Conduit, his ascent to the Citadel, his journey through a keeper tunnel, his confrontation with the Illusive Man, how he managed to make him see the truth, and how he shot himself like Saren did, and his confrontation with the Catalyst, the choices it gave him, the claims that all synthetics will be wiped out if the destruction of the Reapers was chosen.

"That would make one hell of a story, thank you, Shepard.." Hackett said before looking down, "Unfortunately, I have some bad news... that part were you said that synthetics will be wiped out is.. true.." he added, "Right now we have Geth ships drifting in space, and their ground units deactivated, the Quarians have begun salvage operations."

"So.. I've basically committed genocide?" Shepard said in horror as he realized his actions, "But there is some good news.. the Quarians are finding a way to reactivate them, and someone named, David Archer, is currently assisting them.." Hackett assured him, "Don't beat yourself up over what happened, the Geth would have probably done the same if they were in your position.."

Despite the Admiral's assurance, Shepard couldn't help think about how he wasted Legion's sacrifice, his efforts to make EDI feel like a person, and how he made her and Joker feel complete with one another. But he then remembered one of his conversation with EDI, on how she chose to modify her self-preservation code that she would prefer to sacrifice herself for her friends and loved ones.

"I hope so.." Shepard said, as he silently hoped that EDI and the Geth would understand his decision, that he chose to destroy the Reapers, no matter the cost.

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Exodus Cluster  
** **A week later**

"So, is anyone prepared to test if this hunk of junk still works?" Joker asked the crew, "Did you just call the Normandy a hunk of junk?" Adams asked, despite knowing that he was only joking, "The thing is, me and Shepard would sometimes insult the Normandy whenever she fails at times.. So is everybody ready?" Joker rebuked, as soon as he heard the crew's confirmation he began pre-flight checks and started the Normandy's drive core.

To those in the Engineering, the sight of the drive core powering up was a magnificent sight, despite the fact it had multiple safety issues. Once the Normandy began ascending, the intercom was filled with the pilot's joyous voice, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have achieved flight. Our current location is the Exodus Cluster, ETA to the Sol System is estimated to be a week and a few days."

Once the frigate exited the planet's atmosphere, and arrived at the edge of the system, the Normandy began its long FTL voyage back home.

* * *

 **Geneva, European Union  
January 8, 2187**

Despite being completely healed, the doctors decided not to release Shepard yet, much to his chagrin, then again, it meant another week before meeting with the media, politicians, and a bunch of admirals waiting to dump medals and possibly a desk job at his face. Before he could drift back into his slumber, he was interrupted with the door being opened, his latest visitors were Javik and Cortez.

"Hey, Shepard, glad to see you're alive, and still in one piece" Cortez said as he sat beside the bed, "You too, Steve" Shepard nodded before looking at the Prothean, "Javik, where'd you been for the past few months?" he asked.

"Roaming around this planet, examining the prim- Humans, I have.. learned a few things about the species of this cycle" Javik said, "And what is it you learned?" Shepard asked curiously, half of him hoped that Javik learned an important moral lesson about their cycle and that he changed his mind about taking his own life once he finds the location of his fallen comrades.

"Your species, despite being individualistic and at times, selfish, are a resilient, resourceful people, and when I thought about this cycles willingness to help the weak, I believed that it was a weakness, but then seeing the people here.. cooperate, it seems to have made me contemplate about something" Javik said, "That, like you have said, it is hard to think outside the 'box' I have ever known of.."

"So you've finally seen what peace looks like?" Shepard inquired, "Yes, I have made my decision. I will remain until the end of my life to see what peace is like, and once my end is near, I will go to my people, and die with them" Javik said, his decision to live calmed Shepard's conscience, _one less person dying on my watch,_ he thought.

"So, how long do Protheans usually live, Javik?" a curious Steve asked, "A hundred less than the Commander's new lifespan." Javik said, the words surprised Shepard, as he knew for a fact that he'll live as long like most humans, a hundred and fifty years, "Oh, Miss Lawson didn't tell you?" Steve said as he noticed the Commander's surprise.

"No, they kept me out of the loop about that one.." Shepard said, "Let me guess, Project Lazarus was involved?"

A cool voice echoed through the room with Shepard looking for the source, "Right you are, Commander.." there he saw Miranda Lawson, "One of the few things that the Illusive Man allowed us to do, a few gene modifications to your regenerative abilities which in turn extended your lifespan to about 300 more."

"Heh, I don't know if I should thank you or.." Shepard said with humor in his voice, "You should probably thank us, since you get to live a bit longer with your bondmate.." Miranda replied with a laugh.

"Anyways, the doctors have you cleared and the Admiralty Board wishes to speak with you." Miranda said, "The Admiralty Board?" Shepard asked, he was out of the loop that he didn't even know that the Alliance Military set up a junta. He was immediately helped up by Steve and was escorted to a shuttle that would take them to Alliance HQ.

"I thought I was supposed to be here for another week?" Shepard asked as they boarded the shuttle, "They just told me they needed you, probably want to award you or something." Miranda answered as the shuttle flew off.

* * *

 **Alliance Government Center, Geneva**

Once they vacated the shuttle, Shepard took a few moments to enjoy the view that the historical city of Geneva had to offer, unlike most cities in Europe that demolished and replaced most of their historical architecture, Geneva was a mixture of antiquity and modernism. After a few moments of enjoying the view, they were immediately escorted by Alliance guards to the meeting room.

"Lieutenant-Commander Shepard, please have a seat" Admiral Nitesh offered, as Shepard took his seat awaiting for whatever the Admirals would tell him. He watched as the Admirals took their seats, the scene reminded him of his meeting with the Defense Committee, the only difference is that they won't get ambushed by Reapers. However, the fact that they mentioned his full rank, instead of simply Commander, really hints at something.

"Shepard, the Systems Alliance have decided to reward you for your efforts and sacrifices to ensure the survival of the galaxy's species." Admiral Ines said, "We believe this is long overdue, but the Admiralty have finally decided to promote you to Staff Commander" Admiral Hackett finished.

While the thought of being away from a desk job sounded fine for him, he couldn't help but wonder why they didn't decide to promote him to Captain, or Rear Admiral. But then his mother, Rear Admiral Hannah Shepard spoke up.

"Before you ask the question, as your mother and therefore legal guardian, I declined your promotion to Rear Admiral, while you were out in a coma. You always said you hated being stuck in a desk job, and would prefer to be like your father, going on adventures, living on a ship." she explained.

"That and we wouldn't want to have two Admiral Shepard's at the same time, besides we'd be more than happy to promote you to Rear Admiral or Captain if you request it. And we feel that the title 'Commander' befits you." Rear Admiral Mikhailovich humored, "You're a Spectre, so technically you and your ship are no longer bound to Alliance protocols."

"Anyways, back to important matters." Admiral Hackett intervened, "The Alliance is planning to hold an awarding ceremony for you and your crew a few weeks from now, then we'll put you and your crew on shore leave while we dry-dock the Normandy for maintenance. Once that's over, I'll personally inform you of your new orders, either from the Alliance or the Council."

The meeting took a little while longer, once it was over, Shepard was left alone with Admiral Hackett and Rear Admiral Shepard, whom after a while Hackett told them to accompany him to the landing pad on the topmost floor of the building.

"Commander, we received information that the Normandy arrived on Earth a few hours ago, we've ordered them to come here." Admiral Hackett said as he motioned for them to sit down on a waiting bench.

"And I'm eager to meet your crew, son. And I've been waiting to meet your.. what was it again.. 'bondmate'?" Hannah Shepard humored causing John's face to darken to a reddish color.

Hackett decided to cut in the embarrassing conversation that Shepard gotten himself into, "And I've taken the liberty of giving you a temporary apartment here on Geneva, you deserve a rest, a proper rest not like the shore leave you took a few months back.." Hackett said, reminding him of the crazy adventures he had on the Citadel on stopping a rogue clone of his.

While the three of them waited by watching the sun set over Geneva, they saw the shuttle arrived. Shepard stepped forward as the shuttle's doors opened, once it opened, an asari immediately rushed out and gave him a hug, he immediately returned the embrace as he looked on to his crew. The couple immediately released themselves from each other's grasp.

Shepard looked at Liara and noticed a small bump at her stomach, the asari blushed as she looked him at the eyes, "Shepard.. I.. we're going to have a daughter" Liara stammered, "The first of our little blue children?" Shepard said as they both chuckled.

"Liara T'Soni, I'm Hannah Shepard, his mother." the Rear Admiral stepped in as she introduced herself, "While I don't have a high opinion regarding other species, especially the batarians, I can see my son chose well." Hannah joked, "Though, I wasn't expecting that I'd be a grandmother so soon."

As his bondmate and mother had a chat, Shepard immediately went over to meet his crew. Many of them were happy to finally see him once more,

"Garrus, looking good as usual, no extra scars from that day" Shepard greeted his turian best friend, "Well, I could say the same to you.." the turian replied, "So how are things between you and Tali?" the human said before the mentioned quarian stepped in, "Well, I'm happy to tell you that it was not a fling." Tali said.

Then he moved to Joker, while he was expecting that Joker didn't knew why EDI went offline, what happened next pretty much surprised Shepard, "Before you say anything, I hated you for killing EDI, but then I realized that she would have done the same thing if she was in your place" Joker said, "And your comm's were still working when you spoke to that.. thing.. don't worry I didn't show it to everyone else."

As they had their little reunion, Shepard was approached by Admiral Hackett who gave him a pat on the shoulder, "You've picked your crew well, Shepard. If there's one reason why you won this war it's because you had a crew that not only follows orders, but also cares for one another." the Admiral praised him.

"I guess you're right, Admiral." Shepard said as he looked at the sunset over Geneva, thinking about the future that the galaxy holds for him, his bondmate, and their friends.


	3. Normandy Reinstated

_Systems Alliance Parliamentary Elections: The Progressivo Societas party won 63% votes in the Parliament, with party leader Sonia Kolosov becoming the next Prime Minister of the Systems Alliance. The Conservitas Unitas won with 31% of the votes, the remaining 6% going over to the Terra Firma party._

 _The Terra Firma party declared that despite their low number of seats in the Parliament, they will still continue to push their agenda of distancing humanity from galactic politics, citing the Citadel and the other race's apparent idleness during the first days of the invasion as proof of their incompetence and complete disregard for humanity._

* * *

 **London, Earth  
June 8, 2187  
**

Shepard never had the opportunity to attend the state funeral that Admiral Anderson had received. He planned on visiting his mentor's resting place once he was discharged from the hospital, but the numerous meetings and official businesses that he had to attend prevented him from continuing with his plans, until today.

After laying a wreath of flowers onto the headstone of his fallen comrade, Shepard said a prayer before deciding to speak to his friend, even though he may not hear him anymore, "I hope you're happy, wherever you are right now." Shepard began.

"Remember our last conversation, the part where we talked about settling down?" Shepard looked at the sky as he said this, "I said that I probably won't be good at it, but then I reunited with Liara only to find out she was pregnant with my child."

"I never expected to be a father, probably because I didn't grew up in, what most would call, a normal family. My dad died in a ground battle against Batarian raiders, and while I love my mother dearly, we never really got along until now. I never had a father-figure to emulate from, until you came into my life." the soldier began tearing up, "At first, I expected you to act like most COs in the navy, gruff and professional, but then you showed me compassion, and concern. I became your protege, and you became my mentor, but we became more than that, I saw you as a father figure while you saw me as a son, you became someone that I could follow in their footsteps."

With tears running down his cheeks, Shepard touched the headstone of his former mentor. "Thank you, Anderson, for.. everything.." he said before a comforting hand placed itself on his shoulder, he looked around to see his lovely bondmate, Liara, whom he had married a few months ago and had just given birth to their daughter, Benezia.

"I never knew him that much, but from what I saw between you two... he was a great man." the asari said as she pulled Shepard into a comforting embrace, "He did everything just to give us all the chance to live in peace."

"I know, I just hope wherever he is, he's putting in a good word for us.." Shepard said as they walked back to their skycar.

* * *

 **Geneva, European Union  
** **July 27, 2187**

For the first time in a hundred years, the Citadel Council were the ones who decided to visit the government of a Council Race. The remnants of the Alliance Garrison tightened up their security in the event of any violence that could break out, as human opinion of the Council dropped immensely during the initial days of the Reaper invasion.

Shepard and his crew were invited, for the event was also their awarding ceremony. Most of the crew were dressed in their formal wear, with Shepard and his fellow human crewmates wearing their dress blues, Garrus in his armor, Javik still wearing his somewhat elegant combat armor, and Liara wore her usual lab coat armor while holding their daughter on her arms, but to Shepard's slight dismay, the engineering crew, Tali and Joker were absent, according to Admiral Hackett, they had a classified assignment.

The event began following the tradition for most human formal military events, with the anthems of the Systems Alliance, Turian Hierarchy, the Armali Republic, and the hymn of the Citadel Council being played, combined with 21-gun salutes and a fly-by made by a squadron of F-61 Trident fighters.

Afterwards the Prime Minister gave a speech, one that emphasized the sacrifices of those who fought in the war. With Admiral Hackett, praising the crew for their bravery, efforts and sacrifices. With ambassadors from the Turian Hierarchy and the Asari Republics giving their respective speeches of thanks.

The Councilors spoke next, with Valern and Sparatus apologizing for their indifference and disbelief to Shepard's claims about Sovereign, and Tevos giving a message on how the idea of galactic unity became a reality and that it should continue even with the lack of a common enemy.

"May the crew of the SSV Normandy, step forward please." Admiral Hackett said, as the crew stepped forward they were approached one-by-one by the officials, the crew were awarded with the Star of Terra, the Palladium Star, the Nova Cluster, the Star of Sur'Kesh and the Rose of Thessia.

"Due to your bravery and sacrifices, you have been given the highest honors that each race could provide. In the dark night, you became our sole ray of light, the symbol of hope, and unity." Councilor Tevos said, "May the races of the galaxy always remember your deeds"

After a few more hours of speeches, parades, and treaty signings, the ceremony came to an end. As they prepared to leave, they were approached by Admiral Hackett along with Rear Admiral Shepard.

"Commander, if you would come with us, the Alliance has something to give you." the Admiral said as he gestured to a shuttle that just landed.

As the crew made their way to the shuttle, they were surrounded by crowds applauding and cheering them, some even threw petals of flowers at them, and others simply took pictures of the heroes as they passed by.

* * *

 **Alliance** **Dockyards EU-44, Earth**

As the crew exited their shuttles, they began walking to the direction where Admiral Hackett and Rear Admiral Hannah Shepard were heading, as they looked around they saw new frigates being constructed, however they noticed that most of them had similar features to the Normandy-class frigate. "Admiral, these ships look similar to the Normandy." Shepard wondered, the Admiral simply gave a small laugh.

The doors to one of the docking bays opened to reveal the Normandy in all her glory, the Silaris armor glimmering the metallic gray colors of the frigate.

The crew looked in awe as they realized what was going on, Admiral Hackett immediately came up to the Commander.

"The Alliance has reinstated you command of the Normandy SR-2, we've have it repaired, resupplied and cleaned up for you.." the Admiral said, "Welcome home, Commander."

As the airlock doors of the frigate opened, they were greeted with the faces of Joker, the Engineering crew, Specialist Traynor and Tali.

Traynor spoke up first as she approached the Commander, "Commander, it's an honor to be back at your side again." she said as she and the engineering team saluted.

"Traynor, you decided to stay?" Shepard asked, "Of course, after serving with you guys I felt that the lab jobs didn't have that same excitement as they used to." the specialist replied.

Engineer Adams became next to speak up, "I believe you've seen the frigates under construction?" he asked while pointing to the adjacent drydocks, "The Alliance has officially began constructing 12 new Normandy-class stealth frigates. The other prototype got destroyed during the war though.",

Afterwards Joker slipped into the conversation, "Yeah, but those new frigates won't see the same action that ours had seen, they probably won't get a pilot better than me and they won't have an AI like ours." the pilot said.

Shepard was confused when he heard Joker talk about the AI, the way on how the pilot said it made it seem like that EDI was back online, "What do you mean when you said: 'they won't have an AI like ours', Joker?" Shepard questioned as Joker simply gave him a smile, "I think it would be better to see it for yourself." he said as he walked back to the Normandy.

Rear Admiral Hannah Shepard approached behind him and gave him a pat on the shoulder, "Well, son, guess you'll be back into your little adventures once more. Just try not to get spaced like last time." his mother said, "And besides, I think you're gonna have two reasons to make sure that doesn't happen again." she added as they looked towards Liara and the child she was carrying, the two Shepards smiled at each other and hugged for while.

"Looks like your daughter is going to be a spacer, like you did." she said, "And John.." the rear admiral gave a salute, "I'm proud of you." the Commander smiled as returned the salute as he walked to his ship.

As he entered the CIC, he saw the crew saluting him, "It is an honor to be with you guys again. This time perhaps we'll finally get a normal routine around here." Shepard said as he returned the salute. The crew immediately returned to their posts as the Normandy began take-off procedures, with Shepard going back to the cockpit.

Once he entered the cockpit, he was shocked to see the robotic body that was sitting in the co-pilot's seat. "EDI, is that you?" Shepard asked in confusion, the metallic platform stood up, "Yes, the Crucible blast simply deactivated most synthetics, it only took a few months before a research team and Tali found a way to reactivate me and the Geth." the AI said before Joker slipped in, "And don't you worry about a thing, Shepard, the Geth won't try to kill you in revenge for nearly killing them." Joker humored.

EDI smiled at Joker before looking back at Shepard, "I believe that you should check on Executive Officer Williams." EDI said, "And Shepard, welcome back home." Joker said as Shepard left the cockpit to check on his new Executive Officer.

Shepard entered the crew deck, like the rest of the Normandy, the area was now clean and organized, the tangled wires and cables were properly hidden, and most of the exposed exhaust vents were covered.

As he made his way to the mess, he saw Ashley speaking with James, the latter noticing him immediately, "Hey Loco!" the marine greeted as the two stood up from their seats.

"James, how's it going?" Shepard said as he shook hands with the marine, "Doing great, I just completed N7 training, and while one of the Admirals offered me to be part of a N7 Squad that was going to be stationed near the Terminus, Admiral Hackett also gave me the choice of becoming the Marine Lieutenant of the Normandy's new marine detachment. I chose the latter, because being with you guys, felt like family." Vega said, while Shepard nodded a smile.

"So I believe you're the ship's new XO?" Shepard asked Ashley, "Well, the brass seems to prefer having their human spectres on one ship, and besides atleast I get to be in command whenever you're ashore." Ashley said, while Shepard simply chuckled.

"But you do realize that there probably won't be a lot of reasons for me to be ashore anymore, right?" Shepard humored back, "Well, better to be second-in-command than being not-in-command at all, sir." Ashley said.

Shepard checked on Dr. Chakwas, who was more than happy to be back in the ship she called home, and to be with the people she considered her family, they discussed about their new lives after the war, afterwards he checked on Garrus in the main gun room, apparently Tali was also there, with the two arguing about shotguns and rifles, with Garrus later joking about 'calibrating' Tali.

Afterwards he went back to his cabin, where he was greeted by his bondmate and their daughter, "I guess being a spacer runs in the Shepard family?" Liara jokingly asked as the commander sat beside her, "Yeah, I guess. But we could settle down on Thessia when I retire." he answered back.

"The question is, when will you retire?" the asari questioned, "Hopefully before I reach a hundred." Shepard said as the two began reminiscing about the past.

"Normandy is now in flight, preparing to leave the Earth atmosphere in a few minutes. All hands stand-by and probably hold on to something." Joker said through the intercom as the Normandy began exiting the planet's atmosphere. After exiting the atmosphere, Shepard was able to see from his window the beautiful blue marble, the same sight that began his journey.

* * *

 _ **Normandy SR-1, Sol System  
2183**_

 _'I'll make the call', the very words that began it all. Lieutenant-Commander John Shepard was transferred from his post as Marine Lieutenant of an Alliance vessel stationed in the outskirts of Alliance territories to the new prototype ship, the ship that the Turian Hierarchy and the Human Alliance jointly built._

 _"Normandy beginning flight to the Sol Relay, all hands please stand-by." the pilot said through the intercom as Shepard looked over the great blue marble, birthplace of Humanity. It had been several months after he was transferred to the prototype ship, the first few months involved a shore-leave on Earth, a briefing of his assignment, and meeting with Captain Anderson, the CO of the ship._

 _"Sub-light travel achieved, all hands please be alert for any updates" the frigate's VI updated everyone. Shepard began walking away from the view, as he walked to the frigate's cockpit he was greeted by many of its crew members._

 _As he reached the cockpit, Shepard was greeted with the sight of the Charon Relay, the relay that began Humanity's entry into the galactic stage, and unbeknownst to him, the great journey he was about to embark._

 _"Charon Relay is in range, acquiring approach vector." the pilot said as the frigate began its adventure._

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Sol System  
** **Present Day**

"Commander, Admiral Hackett is requesting for you on vid-comm." Specialist Traynor informed the commander as he passed by the CIC. As the Commander entered the comm-room, he was greeted by the holographic projection of the Admiral.

"Staff-Commander Shepard, I believe this is usually the part where I give you an assignment or inform you of developing events." the Admiral remarked, "But right now, I think you've earned the time to take a look at the new era you've ushered in for us."

"I do believe I need to be 'put in the loop' about the events that took place, sir." Shepard said as he looked at the Admiral, "I've sent a report to your extranet address, and I believe that the Codex is being updated to include the events that took place during your coma." the Admiral answered.

"I believe that's all I have to say right now, Commander. Hackett out." the Admiral said as his holographic project dissipated.

As Shepard went to the frigate's cockpit, he was greeted by Joker's voice, "So Commander, any specific place you want to go?" Joker asked, "Just roam around the galaxy for a while, Joker." Shepard answered, "Really? No missions to take you to?" Joker questioned, "Yep, Hackett gave us the time-off to roam around." Shepard said.

"Well, just tell me if we have to deliver you to a diplomatic mission, stop some raiders or pirates, visit a friend, or maybe call-up the Council just to hang up on them?" Joker humorously said as he went back to piloting the ship.

The Commander went to the mess hall for some grub, while eating, Shepard read through the numerous news articles, Alliance, and Council Intel about the events that took place when he was out cold. While most of the news were optimistic about the situation, there were some headlines that got Shepard's attention:

 _'Sur'Kesh on the brink of civil war', 'Batarian Free States clash with remnants of the Hegemony', 'Minor Republic on Thessia collapses into civil war', 'Alliance commences surgical strikes on pirate bases', 'Cerberus remnants still at large' and 'Krogan Clans on the brink of conflict'._

"Shepard, you seem troubled." Liara said from the opposite side of the table while watching over their daughter on the floor who played with her toys, "I just read the news, it seems a lot of people followed war with more war." Shepard told the concerned asari, "You shouldn't worry about that, besides look at the bigger picture: people are rebuilding and fighting for change." Liara assured him.

"I don't know, sometimes that change could cause more misery than hope." Shepard told her, "And you think that someone should guide them into the right path, you keep thinking that _you_ should be the one guiding them." Liara frowned as their conversation became sour.

"I never said.." Shepard tried to calm her but was interrupted, "Ever since we fought Saren, and the Reapers, you felt that it is _your_ moral obligation to lead people!" the asari accused.

The two remained silent for a while, the silence only being interrupted by the ship's engines and their daughter's voice, until Liara spoke up, "It's true that you should be leading people into the right path, but that was the past, you must accept the fact that the galaxy might no longer need you anymore." Liara said, her anger turning into sadness, "The fact that you could now spend the rest of your life with us... in peace.."

Shepard immediately sat beside her and pulled her in for a comforting hug, "And happiness..." the man finished as he kissed the asari's forehead, "You're probably right, Liara, the galaxy no longer needs me." Shepard apologized.

The Asari looked up at her bondmate, her sadness and anger from earlier now gone, "Besides, you're forgetting that your bondmate is the most powerful information broker in the galaxy." the asari said, hoping to forget the argument they had earlier, "I guess you're right about that one." Shepard smiled at the asari. Both parties were thankful that it was nighttime for the Normandy as it prevented most of the crew from seeing their argument earlier.

"Well, it only took a few months for you two to argue like a true married couple." a familiar voice came from the med-bay, the two in question turned around as they realized who it was, the good Doctor Chakwas, who was cradling a baby asari in her arms, "But the next time you argue, keep an eye on your child." the doctor said as she handed the infant back to Liara.

As the couple went back to their cabin, the two lay on the bed with their infant daughter in the middle, before they drifted to sleep they watched the scenery that the window provided, the endless expanse of stars. "There's no place I'd rather be right now, Liara" Shepard said before they drifted to sleep.


	4. Shadow Play

_A/N: This chapter will alternate between the viewpoints about the Normandy's crew, and the key players in the galaxy and the story itself. This is also the first chapter to exceed 4,000 words._

* * *

 _"There is more than what they say about my involvement in Galactic History. However it is a secret that only my closest friends and loved ones know"_ _\- Doctor Liara T'Soni-Shepard; Armali News Today Interview, 2237 CE_

* * *

 **Omega, Sahrabarik System  
** **January 23, 2187**

A lone drell entered his room that was filled with communication devices, monitoring equipment, and surveillance feeds that were neatly hidden behind the seemingly normal decors that surrounded his room. His living quarters were located in one of the residential blocks of the notorious Omega Station, while the crime and violence that was part of Omega began to dissipate after a sudden change of heart by their _de facto_ ruler, Aria T'Loak, the Drell had to stay focused for the safety of himself and his employer.

The drell looked around his room, looking for anything suspicious, ensuring that he is the lone occupant in his quarters, for his job was one of the most dangerous as he dealt information that came from the most information broker in the galaxy, the Shadow Broker. Seeing that he is alone, and safe for the time being, he began hailing his employer for a vid-call.

A few moments of waiting paid off when his employer's dark silhouette appeared on the screen, "Clearance Code Two-One-Eight-Three Lima Tango, Agent Feron requesting vid-call." the drell answered as he calmly waited for a response from his employer. The screen cleaned itself to reveal a teal-blue asari, a young, beautiful and innocent face, the Drell's friend, Liara T'Soni.

"Feron, I hope you're not trying to find an excuse just to have a friendly conversation with me." the asari broker said, her brows raised in slight amusement, "You do know if I wanted to do that, I could have just visited you in person." the Drell laughed at his employer's words, "This is about the information we gathered from Sur'Kesh, Omega, Illium, and other intel that you might find interesting."

"I need an update on the new method of 'governance' that Aria is establishing, and possibly an update on Omega's notorious syndicates." the asari kindly asked the drell while he began to slyly grin "I hope you're still not jealous about the fact that when you melded again with Shepard, you saw a memory of your husband thinking about the 'tension' that Aria displayed towards him." the Drell joked.

"First of all, I sent that message after my homeworld fell so I wasn't myself when I sent that message, and secondly, I'm not married to Shepard... yet, and third, I don't have time for jokes Feron." the asari defended herself as she began to frown in annoyance.

"At least you didn't send that message to every agent in the galaxy, or didn't flayed Aria with your mind." the Drell continued to joke as the asari still showed annoyance on her face, "Feron..." the asari growled, growing impatient with the drell as her biotics subconsciously flared in anger.

The drell flinched when he saw the asari flaring up her biotics, deciding that joking with the asari was a bad idea, the drell immediately went back to his original purpose for contacting her. The drell sighed in relief as the asari's biotics calmed down.

"Alright, I'll give you the short version: the Talons are currently tasked with pacifying the splinter groups of each gang and Aria is becoming what most would describe: a benevolent dictator." Feron began reading his datapad, "And the syndicates that pose a threat to 'internal security' are being hunted down. All in all, things are a bit unusually nice here on Omega."

"You mentioned reports about the STG agents?" the asari broker asked as the drell looked at the datapad he held, "According to eavesdrops and intel we gathered from Sur'Kesh: the Salarian Union is currently experiencing civil unrest, most of us expect that a civil war would erupt within a few months." the drell informed her

"We've also received information about the political clans and their different plans to overthrow the Linron Dalatrass and some loyalist agents within the STG planning to assassinate Urdnot Wrex in order to prevent Krogan reunification. And some of them plan to leak the well-hidden fact that the Turians were the ones who released the Genophage by violating the two-party confirmation protocol" the drell added.

"Say that last part again?" the asari said in shock, "Loyalist agents inside the STG are planning to assassinate Krogan Chief Urdnot Wrex, and those involved in curing the Genophage" the drell repeated his words. "Feron, send the full report to my address, and keep me updated on the situation on Sur'Kesh. I have problems to attend to." Liara ordered the agent before she ended the vid-call.

The asari sat there, thinking about what she would do, if she should intervene and manipulate the conflicts at hand, or if she should leave them to their own devices. If the Salarian Government is serious about making a statement against the Genophage cure, Liara knew that she would be forced to intervene in their conflict sooner or later.

 _'Give me ten minutes and I could start a war'_

Instead of sitting back and letting the Salarians go on with their civil war free from intervention, Liara knew that if a political clan who was against the Genophage cure took power, then the Salarian Union might as well become the next Batarian Hegemony and begin a path of self-isolation and attempt to undermine the fragile peace that formed after the Reaper War. She had to intervene, to save them from themselves.

Liara began typing numerous messages to her agents stationed in Sur'Kesh and inside the STG itself, she also anonymously informed the governments of the Turian Hierarchy and the Systems Alliance of the possible threat that the corrupt Dalatrass of the Salarian Union poses.

"Glyph, send these messages to the leaders of the Turian Hierarchy, the Human Systems Alliance, and the Serrice Republic." Liara ordered the drone, "And inform our 'termination' agents on Sur'Kesh to begin preparations, and send them the list of possible targets."

"Goddess watch over us all.." the asari silently prayed.

* * *

 **Palaven Command**

"Primarch Victus, our intelligence team just received an anonymous tip, we believe it's from the Shadow Broker themselves." a turian intel officer informed the Primarch, "Read it to me, Lieutenant." the Primarch ordered.

 _"Numerous Dalatrasses and agents loyal to them in the STG are planning to assassinate the Krogan Clan Chief Urdnot Wrex. Sources indicate that they plan to prevent Krogan unification under the Urdnot banner."_ the intel officer read aloud for the Primarch to hear, _"The Salarian Union also began secretly uplifting the Yahg to use in expanding Salarian influence, possibly by causing chaos within Asari and Turian worlds to disrupt their economies to allow the Union to gain influence and wealth."_

"Inform the Captain of the 51st Blackwatch Regiment to meet me here, as soon as possible." the Primarch ordered. _"It seems the Salarians couldn't learn from the Krogan Rebellions a thing or two about uplifting some militaristic race."_ the Primarch thought to himself.

If the information they received was right, then the Salarians are treading on a dangerous path to self-destruction. That their supposed allies were simply fooling them, then again they did turn their back on the entire galaxy even when the Asari officially joined the war. And if they were going to prevent another militaristic race from unleashing hell on the galaxy once more, they had to intervene in any way they deem necessary.

 _"If they prevent Krogan unification under the Udrnot banner, then there might be a second Krogan Rebellion and the galaxy isn't ready for that yet."_ the Primarch said to himself, _"And if they are using uplifted species to expand Salarian interests, they might even sabotage our economic and military might."_

 _"The Salarian Union cannot be trusted right now, if we are to rebuild Palaven and the Hierarchy then perhaps we should take care of those backstabbing Salarians."_ the primarch clenched his fist as he thought of this.

"Sir, are you sure that we should intervene in their own conflict?" the intel officer concernedly asked, "We have to save the Salarians from their greatest enemy... themselves..." the Primarch reasoned to his subordinate.

* * *

 **Systems Alliance Headquarters, Earth  
March 23, 2187**

"So the Salarian Union is currently involved in a civil war, why should we care?" Rear Admiral Mikhailovich argued, "We have other problems to contend with, especially with the Batarian Civil War possibly spilling over Alliance Space!"

"Let us remember that if the intel we received from the anonymous source is true, then the galactic economy would be shaken badly if the Salarian Union attempts to distance themselves from galactic trade as an attempt of a galactic-wide economic sabotage!" Prime Minister Kolosov told the Rear Admiral.

"Humanity has always survived economic meltdowns before, why should this one be any different?" Mikhailovich struck back before Rear Admiral Shepard stood up, "Mikhailovich, let me remind you that building those beloved cruisers you always wanted cost credits. And that the ships we're currently constructing for your flotilla relies on Salarian exports." Kolosov argued back.

"And the fact that they've begun their attempt of uplifting the Yahg is a source of concern for us, an entire platoon of Yahgs could rip apart an entire colony garrison and destroy our economic facilities. It's possible that the Salarians planned on using the Yahg to sabotage the industrial, economic, and military capabilities of their closest rivals, including Humanity." Kolosov informed them.

"We should see if the majority of the board agrees." Hackett suggested, "All those in favor of intervention in the Salarian Civil War, please stand up." Kolosov asked her colleagues, nearly all of the admirals and her advisors stood up while a few, including Mikhailovich, remained seated.

"Then it's settled then, anybody have any ideas on how we should intervene?" Kolosov asked the admirals, "We could always use Commander Shepard, whichever side he chooses, the majority of the Salarians will follow." Lindholm suggested.

"He might make some powerful enemies within the STG while he's at it, so that's out of the question, Lindholm." Hannah Shepard frowned at Lindholm, not wanting to risk her son and his family.

"I propose we send in a covert team of N7 infiltrators to ensure that those, who pose a threat to the interests of humanity and our allies, are taken care of." Prime Minister Kolosov suggested.

"And how would we prevent the discovery of our plans?" Admiral Lindholm voiced her concern, "It's simple, we send them in unmarked, transport them in an unmarked vessel, and we should keep this to ourselves." Kolosov told her.

"Is the Admiralty in agreement with the suggestion?" she asked before the Admirals nodded in agreement.

"Admirals, I want this operation executed within the next week, this emergency meeting is dismissed." Prime Minister Kolosov said as she and some of the Admirals stood up and left the room, leaving Hannah Shepard, Admiral Hackett and Ines, along with a few other admirals.

"Hannah and Hackett, if you do inform the Commander about this, try not to give the specifics of this operation. I don't want to see a report of the man trying to play hero without the authorization of the Alliance." Rear Admiral Mikhailovich said as he left the room.

"I have a feeling that he has his own sources, especially within his ship." Hannah muttered as the admirals began looking at her direction.

"The Prime Minister told us that a few hours ago the Batarian Free States are pleading for our assistance in their civil war." Admiral Nitesh slowly said.

"Rear Admiral Shepard, the Alliance will be dispatching a portion of the Fifth Fleet to the disputed territories." Nitesh told her as the room's holo-screen highlighted the deployment area, "The Batarian Navy was smashed to pieces during the invasion, why would the Alliance send one of their strongest fleets for this?" Hannah questioned as she raised her brows.

"We don't know either but it's clear that the Batarian Free States offered something that Kolosov and her cabinet can't refuse." Hackett told her, "It could be access to their industrial facilities, mining deals, or possibly transfer of colonies they captured from us and the other races."

"And that's why we're sending you to lead that detachment on the Orizaba." Nitesh informed her, still the woman had her brows raised.

"Let me guess, you want the Batarian rebels to uphold the end of whatever their bargain by sending in the famed 'Vengeful Widow'?" Hannah told them, aware of her reputation.

Hannah Shepard was notorious for leading the Alliance in numerous raids against Batarian slavers and her ruthless tactics during minor skirmishes with the Hegemony. It was said that her ruthlessness and hatred against the Batarians, especially the Hegemony, was fueled by her desire to avenge her husband, who was killed by pirates who admitted that they were connected with the Batarian Hegemony.

"Precisely our point, Hannah" Nitesh said to her, "Right now we can't tell if the Free States could be trusted, if your presence somehow intimidates them then they wouldn't dare to plunge a dagger in our backs."

"I suppose Hackett isn't coming?" Hannah looked at Hackett, "As Fleet Admiral, my post should be where the Alliance Parliament is. The Orizaba is yours once more, I apologize for taking over command when I was forced to evacuate Arcturus." the Fleet Admiral answered her concerns.

"Alright, I guess being stuck watching those four-eyed bastards should be fine by me." Hannah resigned to her assignment. "Just tell me when's the deployment."

"A few days from now, and don't drag your son into this." Admiral Lindholm advised her, "The Batarians are still over the edge about the whole Bahak Incident."

"But you're sending me, his mother" Hannah told Lindholm, "The Lion of Elysium doesn't hold any grudges against the batarians, you're the exact opposite. You are the 'Vengeful Widow', your mere presence is enough to make the Batarians fear for their lives while his presence only causes them to demand blood." Lindholm reasoned out.

"You lost friends to the Turians during the First Contact War yet you don't harbor any resentment against them, why is that?" a young Rear Admiral asked her, "That was war, a civilized one, they died with honor. My husband was captured by Batarian pirates, then they just threw him out in the streets and publicly executed him like some damn animal." Hannah explained, her voice a mixture of anger and sadness.

"Let's just hope the Free State is more civilized than the Hegemony and their back-door funded raiders." Hannah told them, "If not, then they'll regret the day they cross the Alliance."

* * *

 **Alliance Diplomatic Ship, Arcturus System  
** **August 4, 2187**

Several months ago before the Civil War escalated on Sur'Kesh, the leaders of the Turian Hierarchy, Systems Alliance, and some of the Asari Republics received information from the Shadow Broker concerning about the dubious actions of the Salarians.

"Primarch Adrien Victus, pleased to make your acquaintance.." Prime Minister Kolosov shook hands with the Primarch, "I'm thankful that you were able to find time for this important meeting."

"I believe this meeting has something to do with the situation on Sur'Kesh?" Primarch Victus inquired, "Yes, and how the Salarians were planning to sabotage our economies to ensure that their influence spreads." Kolosov answered.

"It seems we have a 'mutual friend', Prime Minister.. as we received the same information a few months ago." Victus informed the Prime Minister, "It came from an anonymous source that only called themselves as the Shadow Broker, am I correct?"

"Yes, it seems that whoever this 'Shadow Broker' is, they seem to want the influence of the Salarians to be severely diminished." Kolosov stated her opinion, "The Yahg are already on the verge of spaceflight in a relatively short timespan since we quarantined the planet, it seems possible that the information we received could be true.." Victus also gave his opinion.

"So what do you propose, Prime Minister?" Victus asked Kolosov as he looked at a datapad, "We now know that we can't trust the Salarians so easily, I've been in contact with the Serrice Government who shared the same sentiment as us." Kolosov began.

"My people and the asari plan on sending a covert strike team to eliminate any troublesome individuals in the Salarian Government. Ensure that only those whose goals do not conflict with ours take power." she suggested.

"For once human, it seems we're ahead of you." Primarch Victus flared his mandibles in a turian equivalent of a smile, "I've sent a Blackwatch regiment to Sur'Kesh a few months ago. We're having our intelligence services run around the clock to discover anything, as you humans say, 'fishy' about the Salarians."

"I'm afraid not, Primarch, we sent an N7 Covert Ops Team a few months ago too, along with an Asari Huntress Squad from Serrice. We're coordinating with each other to dig up anything concerning about the Salarian Political Clans." Kolosov smirked back at the Turian.

"And I believe this is the part where you extend an offer of military cooperation in this operation you and the Asari have started?" Victus asked as Kolosov simply nodded, "We accept, our military will begin coordinating with yours as soon as possible."

"And so shall ours, may fate smile upon us favorably.." Kolosov stated as they shook hands.

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Intergalactic Space  
August 14, 2187**

"Alright little wing, just play with your toys while mommy goes to work." Liara said as she put down her daughter on the bed in her office, which surprised her that Ashley didn't bother taking up residence in the old XO office when she became Executive Officer, the human stated that she preferred the comfort of the sleeping pods or the couch in the observation deck.

"Doctor T'Soni, you have a message from Agent Feron." the gleeful little drone named Glyph informed her, as the asari opened her terminal and began reading the message.

 _'Shadow Broker, Dalatrass Linron was nearly assassinated yesterday, our agents say that it was done by opposition members in the STG, the loyalists in her cabinet suddenly disappeared too. We're also receiving reports from our agents on Palaven that the Turian Hierarchy is discussing possible intervention._

 _We've also received reports of Salarian agents scouting Tuchanka, if the information we gave you a few months ago was correct then you should be on your guard. We can't say for sure if the STG is still acting as one but we heard that Major Kirrahe and Padok Wiks are currently part of an opposition faction within the STG itself._

 _And we've gathered enough information about classified covert uplifting programs of the STG under he orders of every Dalatrass elected, hopefully that's enough to incite the populace into riot._

 _And here I thought you wouldn't start a planetary conflict when you become the Shadow Broker. -Agent Feron'_

The last part of the message Feron gave her hit close to home, while the drell's message didn't intend to scold her for her actions, the asari sat there and began contemplating her decisions over the past few months after the war.

"It had to be done.." the asari muttered to herself, she promised Shepard that she would not abuse her powers as the Shadow Broker, that she would never attempt to ruse conflict for any reason, even if the 'ends justify the means'. But the situation is different now, the people of the galaxy are carving themselves a new path but someone should keep them on the right one.

 _"It's true that you should be leading people into the right path, but that was the past, you must accept the fact that the galaxy doesn't need you anymore."_ the fresh memory made the asari feel guilty for herself, she felt like a hypocrite, telling Shepard that the galaxy doesn't need him to lead anymore, that he should let them choose their own path yet here she was, 'leading' the galaxy in the shadows, doing the exact opposite of what she told her bondmate, worse is that she wasn't leading them, she was manipulating them.

 _"Maybe once the galaxy proves that it could stand on its own, I'll retire from being the Shadow Broker.."_ Liara told to herself, _"But right now, they need some guidance.. Goddess, maybe Shepard was right.."_

 _"But the difference is that Shepard leads with his men, on the ground, towards the fire. While I work behind the scenes, manipulating individuals, leaders, corporations, and governments to do the right thing.."_ the asari attempted to reason herself, _"It sounds selfish but I can't live another day without him by my side.."_

When Shepard 'died' a few years ago, Liara felt like she was without purpose, 'a lost puppy' as the humans call it, she nearly went over the edge once. Even after they were reunited, the asari couldn't bear to see her love returning to the Normandy with gunshots and blood all over him, and now that they have a daughter she kept thinking about the story of how Shepard's father died in the line of duty when he was just an infant, leaving the man with only his mother as his sole family.

 _"Shepard's place is with me, and little Benezia, if only the man could accept the idea of a damn desk job.."_ the asari thought to herself, partially blaming the man's stubbornness. Her thoughts were interrupted when their daughter began throwing a fit, a sign of her hunger, the maiden immediately took her daughter to the mess hall to feed her.

* * *

"Commander Shepard, I believe you're informed about the situation developing on Sur'Kesh?" Hackett said on vid-comm, "Yes sir, I believe all races have stated that they will not interfere with the situation?" Shepard asked the admiral.

"Officially, yes, but we both know that there will be some that will intervene from the shadows. Every race has their own agendas, even our own." the Admiral voiced his opinion, "You probably know that the Salarians are a big player in the galactic economy, and that if this civil war goes sideways, then our already-fledging economy would be reduced to rubble."

"Something I should know about?" Shepard suspiciously asked, "Nothing to be concerned about, the Prime Minister and the Admiralty are just simply looking out for the interests of the Alliance." the Admiral answered.

"Uh huh, I'll reserve judgement about that until the situation dies out." the commander said while crossing his arms in suspicion, "I'm sorry Commander, but it's probably for the best since you should spend time taking a break from saving our asses now and then." the Admiral said before closing the channel between them.

The next few days went by with everything mostly normal, routine patrols, the occasional wandering across the galaxy, keeping up-to-date about galactic news, and trying to make the Normandy a bit safer for little Benezia.

However, despite the normalcy that peace offered, the battle-hardened members of the crew would sometimes complain about the lack of action, especially Javik who told everyone that he would like to experience peace, despite this, most of the crew have taken it as a well-deserved reward from all the efforts they did just to save the galaxy.

Liara, however, still continued to work on her network to the point that she found herself dozing off in front of her terminals at times and drinking a bit too much coffee. She would even sneak out of their bed just to work with her sources, she focused herself on ensuring that the regime change in Sur'Kesh and various Terminus Systems colonies would proceed smoothly and according to plan.

 _"Shadow Broker, this is Agent Emerson, Dalatrass Tustow was assassinated by rival STG agents, we've also received reports that half of the Salarian First Fleet has sided with the Widraw Dalatrass. Nothing of importance has passed through the Pranas Relay."_

 _"Shadow Broker, we've received reports that Major Kirrahe's team has destroyed a major refueling station for loyalist troops. The Salarian Union has declared martial law in two of their provinces, and have begun using lethal force on protesters."_

Liara swiftly activated her voice disguiser as she began barking orders to her agents on Sur'Kesh, "Agent Emerson, I need your team to assassinate a high-profile figure within the loyalist factions." she told Agent Emerson as she switched to Agent Murat, "Agent Murat, have your men infiltrate one of the Salarian Dreadnoughts that are loyal to Dalatrass Linron, eliminate its high-ranking officers and put it under command of Kirrahe's faction."

"Any other reports from our agents, Glyph?" the broker asked once more, "The Turian Hierarchy has reportedly sent a Blackwatch regiment to Sur'Kesh. There are also reports of armed humans arriving on Sur'Kesh, our agents suspect they are a N7 Black Ops." Glyph informed her.

"Thank you.. Glyph.." Liara thanked the drone as she began yawning, her eyes feeling drowsy, "Glyph... inform me if.. anyone wishes to.. enter the office." Liara told the drone as she took a nap on her desk, "Of course, Doctor T'Soni." Glyph replied, oblivious to the asari's drowsiness.

* * *

 **Sur'Kesh, Firebase Jade**

Firebase Jade was one of the few resistance bases that survived the Reaper War, while the Reapers focused on harvesting the Salarian population within the cities, the human supremacy group known as Cerberus attacked the Special Task Group's Research Bases across the planet for reasons unknown to this day. During the early days of the invasion, Firebase Jade was a key supply base for the remnants of the Salarian Military as it overlooks an ancient reservoir that once served as the main supplier of freshwater to Salarian cities in the province.

Today, the Firebase serves as one of the major command centers of one of the major factions of the Opposition, led by an agent code-named Vigilant Eye. This faction views that the Salarian form of government, the Political Bloodlines, as a threat to Salarian progress, an outdated concept that no longer serves its purpose in the modern era, that a Military Junta headed by the agents of the STG is must-needed yet temporary solution.

"Major, what happens once we take control of the Union?" a young opposition soldier asked Kirrahe, "Do we simply seize control, or will we reform the Union?"

"I don't know, but our focus should be on removing the corrupt Dalatrasses." Kirrahe answered the young salarian's question. The look on the soldier's face showed that he was not content with the major's answer.

"Major Kirrahe, our scouts have reported that Dalatrass Widraw's forces are coming in fast, it seems they wish to retake this Firebase." a Salarian informed Kirrahe, "Thank you, tell the men to assemble." Kirrahe thanked his colleague

"Vigilant Eye also wishes to inform you that the intel he received was from the Shados Broker themselves, he warns that it could be a ruse to catch us off guard."

The Major climbed the steps up the balcony that overlooks one of the landing pads where his squad was assembled. He could see that most of them are eager, yet some of them are anxious and fearful of the mission.

He knew that he had to motivate them somehow, and that he had to do it now. _Hold the line,_ he thought to himself as he began to quickly think of a speech.

"Men, I know some of you are fearful, anxious and even suspicous about our mission, that we are going to overthrow the current regime of the Salarian Union. It is hard to face the government of old be discarded, let alone be the ones to discard it.

We are the STG, our influence has stopped many wars before but look at our scorched planet, we have held the line yet at what cost? When our allies called for our helped, did we deliver? No, we let old issues and rivalries of the past tear us apart, we abandoned our allies in their hour of need, and thus we nearly condemned the entire galaxy to annihilation!

If we are to secure the future of the Salarian Union, we must overthrow the corrupt government of old! Today, we will hold the line, but not for the corrupt political clans of Sur'Kesh, but for the people of the Salarian Union!" Kirrahe exclaimed to his men, hoping to calm and inspire them to fight for their future.

His speech gained the favor of the men, with most of them applauding and cheering the Major. Their fears and suspicions gone, they now knew what they were fighting for, they had to save the Salarian Union from itself.

"Alright men, we defend this base to the last man! Get to your stations!" the Major ordered as they began frantically preparing for the enemy's attack. "For the Union!" the major began the battle cry.

The moment of truth came as the first barricade was bombarded with saturated gunfire, fortunately, they had the tactical and geographical advantage as their enemies were caught off guard with the traps that they had set just for them. It seemed that Major Kirrahe and his men would once again hold the line.

* * *

 **Widraw Hall, Sur'Kesh**

"Vigilant Eye, we're moving in to secure the package." Salarian Lieutenant Jorik informed his aliased superior, "One of my men swore that he heard a gunshot and some screams a few minutes ago."

 _"Possibly an attempt to assassinate Dalatrass Widraw, if that's the case then we better hurry."_ Vigilant Eye ordered the Lieutenant through his comms, "Alright men.. move in." the team entered through an open window.

The residence of the Widraw Bloodline was eerily dark and silent, as if no one lived there. They searched the estate, room by room, ensuring that nothing is left unchecked. Minutes of searching passed without any significant discoveries, the residence seemed like it was abandoned in such an orderly fashion that there was no traces of the Widraw Dalatrass and her close associates.

Deciding that using night-vision visors weren't enough, a technician was ordered to find a way to switch on the lights. As the team prepared to breach one last room, the master's bedroom, they could hear footsteps inside, possibly the Dalatrass awaiting her inevitable downfall, as the lights switched on, the team breached into the room.

As they moved in, they stood there, seeing the dead body of the Dalatrass and some of her associates lying on the floor in a pool of blood, a window broken, and the most shocking discovery of all, a team composed of asari and human commandos.

"You, drop your weapons or we'll shoot!" Jorik demanded to the opposing force, "I think not" the asari huntress exclaimed as her colleague dropped a smoke grenade to cover their escape.

As the smoke cleared, they stood there alone, the men still shocked about the events that transpired, "Vigilant Eye, Dalatrass Windraw is KIA." Jorik informed his superior through comms.

 _"What happened down there, Jorik?"_ Vigilant Eye calmly asked the Lieutenant, "Asari and Human commandos got here before us, killed the Dalatrass and her associates."

 _"Widraw was known of being an outspoken advocate for expansion of Salarian Influence at the expense of the Asari and Human interests."_ Vigilant Eye gave his hypothesis, _"It's possible the Human and Asari governments are taking action to ensure that only those who agree with their interests would take power"_

"What are our orders now?" Jorik asked the aliased commander, _"Leave it, but don't leave any traces behind."_ Vigilant Eye informed them, as the team left the residence in an orderly fashion, cleaning up any evidences that could implicate them.

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Intergalactic Space  
August 16, 2187**

"Our agents on Sur'Kesh were informed that Firebase Jade has survived the attack, Dalatrass Widraw's forces are stretched thin and are pushed back into retreat." Glyph reported to Liara, who was busy drinking from her coffee mug.

"Inform our agents to resupply the Firebase and send them the coordinates for Dalatrass Widraw and Linron's last known locations, and inform them that no harm comes to the two Dalatrasses, they need to be arrested alive to alleviate concerns over the ongoing coup." Liara kindly asked the drone.

"Of course, Doctor T'Soni." the gleeful drone said as it hovered about the room, "You have received new intel from our agents within Batarian Territories. It seems that the Alliance has stationed a fleet there, our agents are currently investigating the matter."

Just as the asari was about to ask the drone something, the doors to her office suddenly opened as her bondmate entered the room with a somewhat concerned look on his face, "I see you're busy trying to lead the galaxy behind the shadows." Shepard told her as he looked around her terminals. Apparently the pass-code for the door remained unchanged, as Liara checked the door's encryption.

"Shepard, I know I told you that you shouldn't be leading people into the fray but.." Liara began stammering an explanation for her actions, while the ship's crew knew that she was busy with her network she was able to keep most of her activities a well-guarded secret, until now.

"I'm not mad, besides I'm starting to warm up to the idea of a desk job, thanks to you." Shepard assured her, "But I'm more worried about the fact that you've been keeping your activities a secret from us for days now." he voiced his concern.

"Well, I don't know what the crew would think of me when they find out I'm becoming a bit too much manipulative like the Illusive Man.." Liara said, "It's tempting to believe like you have the solution to the galaxy's problems, especially when you work in secret.."

"We had this conversation before, Liara.." Shepard put an assuring hand on her shoulder, "You're not like him, you'll never be. You're an honest person, Liara, and an incorruptible one at that. I can see in you that you'll never become power-hungry like him, you want the best for the galaxy without sacrificing others."

"But what about Sekat, and all those people I put into harm's way just to find the Shadow Broker and Feron?" Liara told him, her eyes showing a mix of fear and remorse, "You were lost back then, you went through hell and back just to find a way to bring me back, and then you still felt like you lost your way, just like me. And if I were in your shoes back then, you'd be damn sure I'd do the same thing." Shepard once again calmly assured her.

"When the Dalatrass promised me Salarian support in exchange for sabotaging the genophage, I have to admit, before we hit Tuchanka, I was tempted to go through with their offer. The Krogan were tough but I needed their fleets for Earth, and their scientists for the Crucible." he confessed as he turned to face Liara's terminals, "Our backs were held against a wall that time, and so I often thought about the immediate solutions to our problems.."

After a moment of silence, the asari spoke up, "Just like when I was hunting for the Shadow Broker, I was so focused on getting Feron back.." her eyes were welling up with tears, "That I never realized that I became the very thing I was hunting for, a person who believes in 'ruthless calculus' as you and Garrus said.."

"Well, no one is perfect, Liara.." Shepard said in a comforting voice, "When I was hunting for the Collectors, I did felt some anger at the Council and felt regret for saving them.."

"But then a new council would show up, but they would still dismiss your claims and the Alliance would probably 'bury the hatchet' about Sovereign and Saren, since they would grow complacent." Liara chuckled, "It seems the galaxy will always have a strange way of treating 'prophets'.."

"So you consider me as some-sort of prophetic figure, T'Soni?" Shepard played along, paying no heed that the asari changed the topic, "I did had some sort of 'hero worship' to you when we first met.. My knight in shining black and red armor.." Liara flattered.

"Flatterer.." the man said before he received a peck on his cheek from the asari, "Right, if you would excuse me.." Liara sat back in her chair and began typing on her console, "I have to send information to trustworthy individuals and organizations, and, excuse the word, manipulate a certain civil war in Sur'Kesh"

* * *

 **Hall of the Union, Sur'Kesh  
August 18, 2187**

"Dalatrass, half of the First Fleet has mutinied against us!" a staffer called to the Dalatrass, "If we are to stay here, then surely our enemies would strike relentlessly to ensure our downfall!"

"If we leave, then it would also become a sign of weakness and our defeat!" another argued, "Don't think like a krogan or a turian! Continuity of the government is the most paramount if we are to ensure our reign over the Salarian Union!"

The Dalatrass simply sat in her chair, slouched, and appearing disinterested in the discussion, to many of her staffers, her appearance and posture seemed like a sign of fatigue over the civil war, and to others: it was a sign that she was accepting her inevitable defeat and the downfall of her political clan.

"Continuity of the government? Only a few provinces have openly rebelled against us!" one of the Dalatrass' most trusted advisor told, "Even if we still have the majority of public approval, the STG and the military are making serious progress in their coup!" a staffer argued back.

"Public approval?" her advisor exclaimed, "They're losing faith in our government and military when the information about our covert uplifting of species were leaked! They'll be demanding our heads for attempting to undermine galactic stability!"

"So we should just leave Sur'Kesh, and let those usurpers take the seat of our rightful government?" the same staffer argued, "Dalatrass Linron! Why do you pay no heed to the situation at hand?"

As the Dalatrass sat in silence, paying no heed to her staffers' complaints, the doors burst open to reveal two Salarian soldiers, "Dalatrass! Our attack on Firebase Jade has failed miserably!" one of the soldiers told them the bad news.

"There's the reason why we should leave, we must recuperate our forces then retake the Uni-" the staffer shouted before being cut-off by the soldier, "We've also lost contact with one of our protection teams!"

The room was silenced over the news, as they knew that the Hall itself was now under attack by the opposition, it was only a matter of time before their reign over the Salarian Union was finally over.

"Dalatrass Linron, we must leave now!" the soldier said before being electrocuted by his colleague's omni-tool, the entire room screamed in panic, "Dalatrass Linron, the Special Tasks Group and the Salarian Military has placed you under arrest for endangering the Salarian Union and her people." the agent said as STG agents began pouring in.

"And tell me, how did I endanger the Salarian Union?" Linron asked calmly despite the situation, seemingly accepting her defeat.

"It's best that the people of Sur'Kesh tell you that." Major Kirrahe said as he entered the room, "Men, take her and the staff under custody. And escort the military council to ensure that they would be able to take their oath."

"Tell me, Major, what do you expect to gain by placing the Union under the hand of a council of military thugs?" Linron smugly asked as she was cuffed by the agents, "Saving the Salarian Union from their greatest enemy, Dalatrass.."

"And who that enemy might be, Major?" the Dalatrass once more asked the Major, "The system of governance that the Union operates from.."

"You're right, major.. The very political system of Sur'Kesh corrupts individuals to their very core.." the Dalatrass began speaking, "But tell me, which is a fate much worse: a corrupt Dalatrass, who simply wishes to gain personal wealth and influence.."

The Dalatrass turned to look at every military personnel standing in the hall, "Or a military council, whose goals seem righteous but given time, will also become blinded and focused to the very temptation of power, doing everything in their power to ensure that their reign remains unopposed?"

"Even if you would return the power to the people, Major, there will always be leaders who will always be tempted by the lust of power, the fruit of all evil." the Dalatrass gave a disturbing smirk that even made Kirrahe flinch, "And do you think that the Shadow Broker, the one who gave you the advantage in this war, govern the Salarian Union without expecting something in return?"

"And what makes you think that our hard-earned victory for the Union was orchestrated by the Shadow Broker?" Kirrahe responded angrily which afterwards Linron took a step forward, "Think about it, Dalatrasses from every bloodline began disappearing or worse. Some of them weren't even executed by your agents or the other factions, some of them were even killed inside their homes, or in exile."

"And everyone in the military command knows that releasing the data about our research projects, especially our covert uplifting, would cause severe public dismay to both the Military and the Government." the Dalatrass plainly stated, "The provinces that were placed under martial law had that information leaked to them. Do you think that the so-called righteous leaders of the opposition would let public distrust grow against them?"

"That's not true, Linron, you're just attempting to justify your misguided deeds!" Kirrahe snapped at her, "Think about it, you know it to be true.." the Dalatrass smirked smugly.

"Get her away from my sight, men!" Kirrahe demanded, not wanting to hear the Dalatrass' statements anymore.

As the Dalatrass was escorted outside by his men, she turned around and looked at the agents, "You and I know very well that power does not come without consequences! The people will not trust your so-called leadership!"

* * *

 _Dalatrass Linron was arrested today, with senior officials from the Special Task Group forming a military council to oversee the "safe transition of government". The newly formed council assures us that they will return power to a new civilian government once they believe that Sur'Kesh is once again ready for it._

 _Despite the successful coup against the Salarian Dalatrass, public approval has dropped immensely, as most salarians believing that nothing will change even once the Military Council will take over the Salarian Union._

 _Urdnot Wrex narrowly survived an assassination attempt yesterday, the assassins that were killed were found to be members of the Salarian Special Task Group. Urdnot Wrex demands an apology from the Salarian Government and that reparations should be paid. He also warns that any further attempts to undermine krogan unification would be met with force._

 _This has been Citadel News._

* * *

 **Normandy SR-2, Intergalactic Space  
** **August 19, 2187**

"Shepard, the Prime Minister called an emergency meeting a few hours ago." Hackett began on vid-comm, "The Alliance Navy has been placed under Alert Condition 3, the possible threats from the Salarian border and Batarian space were her cited reasons for raising the alert level."

"I understand the possibility of a spillover from the Batarian's internal conflict, but the Salarians?" Shepard showed his confusion, "You've heard what they nearly did to Urdnot Wrex, and frankly, I don't feel safe knowing that I'm connected with the man who cured the Genophage." Hackett admitted his concerns.

Shepard paused for a moment before nodding in understanding of Hackett's concerns, "I think I understand, but it seems to me that her goals are to simply destabilize the Krogan to prevent them from being unified under a more progressive banner."

"I know that, Commander, but our species are known for being extremely paranoid when things like this occur." Hackett voiced his opinion, "The Prime Minister doesn't want to take any chances, she just got elected and she doesn't want her term to be cut short by a gunshot."

"So what happens now that the Salarians are undergoing a regime change, Admiral?" Shepard inquired, "The Council will convene a meeting and try to smooth things over with the new government, if things go well then nothing major will change." the Admiral stated.

"Though I don't know what the Salarian Councilor would think about the events that happened on his homeworld." Hackett said, "I have reasons to believe that the Council will send some sort of peacekeeping force to ensure that everything goes smoothly on Sur'Kesh."

"They might even send you on the mission as a Council Spectre, Shepard." Hackett informed him, earning a slight chuckle from Shepard, "Well, I do miss being on planetside these days." the Commander humored.

Hackett gave a small chuckle, something that was uncommon with the grizzled Admiral, "Well, if Anderson was still here, he'd take command of the Normandy and station you on Thessia to keep you focused on your family, Commander." the Admiral humored, surprising Shepard who rarely saw him joke.

"I'd been getting the same sentiment from Liara herself, Admiral." Shepard told the Admiral, "But she's fine with me commanding the ship, as long she's along for the ride."

"Anyways, I just got a priority message from the Council." Hackett changed the topic, "They need you to attend their meeting, seems like it's about the situation that currently transpiring on Sur'Kesh. Hackett out."

As the holographic projection of Hackett dissipated, Shepard called on to Joker through one of his intercoms, "Joker, set a course to the Citadel. It seems we've got ourselves a mission."

Shepard turned around to begin walking out of the room, before he could leave the room, he saw Liara and their daughter leaning on the doorway, "Alright, I know what you're gonna say, something about leaving you and our daughter so I could save the galaxy again." he said.

Liara simply gave a smile and took a step forward closer to him, "Well, that's just one way of putting it." she told him, "But I can't really stop you, can I?"

"You're really going to let me go on a mission?" Shepard asked in surprise, "As long it doesn't involve fighting mechs, or an entire army by yourself." Liara calmly told him.

"And I do need someone to help me fix my mistakes." Liara confessed, "What kind of mistakes?" he inquired.

"Ensuring that the new government gets the public support they get, even if the STG did some questionable things." Liara informed, "I need someone I could trust to fix the one mistake I did on Sur'Kesh."

"And what that might be?" Shepard asked her, "Damaging the reputation of both the Salarian Government and their Military, without public support, the Civil War on Sur'Kesh might as well continue for another year as long as the new government isn't seen as a legitimate successor of the Linron Government."

"Seems easy enough, time to play diplomat once more." Shepard chuckled, "Just try not to get shot.." Liara told him as they left the war room.

* * *

 _To be continued... (Part 1 of the Salarian Revolution Arc)_


End file.
